The Ohio State hockey team (11-9-2, 10-5-2) will leave the friendly confines of Value City Arena for three straight road games in a matter of six days. The Buckeyes will meet the Miami (Oh.) RedHawks (4-15-4, 2-12-3) Tuesday, Jan. 12, at 7 p.m. in Goggin Ice Arena (2,200). OSU will then travel to Ithaca, N.Y., to meet Cornell (7-5-2, 4-2-2 ECAC) on Jan. 15 at 7 p.m. in Lynah Rink (3,824) before facing Colgate (11-5-1, 6-2-0) Jan. 17 at noon in Starr Rink (2,600).

THE BROADCAST

WOSU Radio (820 AM) will continue its inaugural season of live Ohio State hockey action this week, airing all three road games. Herb Howenstine and John Mowat will call Tuesday’s game, while Sam Eiler and former NHL goaltender Bill McKenzie will handle the broadcasting duties against Cornell and Colgate.

TURNING IT UP

Ohio State has won 10 of its last 13 games, climbing to third place in the CCHA standings. The Buckeyes have also won three of their last four road games.

NO MORE MIAMI

Barring a match-up in the post-season, Tuesday’s game against Miami will mark the final meeting between the Buckeyes and RedHawks this season. Each team has won one game in the season series thus far. OSU has completed three other season series this year, winning two and splitting another. (2-1-0 vs. Notre Dame; 2-1-0 vs. Lake Superior; 1-1-1 vs. Michigan State).

NO MORE NON-LEAGUE

The Buckeyes will wrap up the non-conference portion of their regular-season schedule this weekend against Cornell and Colgate. Ohio State is 1-4-0 in non-conference games this season, having dropped three one-goal games to perennial powers Boston College (4-3, 2ot), Boston University (2-1), and Minnesota (4-3). The Buckeyes lone non-conference win came against Minnesota in a second meeting between the two schools.

SPEAKING OF ONE-GOAL GAMES

Ohio State has played in a whopping 10 one-goal games this season, tying with Michigan for the most in the CCHA. The Buckeyes stand 6-4-0 in those games. Four of Ohio State’s last five games have been decided by one-goal.

TICKET INFO

Tickets for all Ohio State home hockey games, played in the luxurious Value City Arena, are now on sale. Call 1-800-GO-BUCKS for details. TICKET EXCHANGE

Fans that were unable to attend the Jan. 2 game in Value City Arena against Michigan due to weather can exchange their old tickets for tickets to a future game based on availability. Fans are encouraged to bring their original tickets to the OSU Athletic Ticket Office (located in Value City Arena) and note what future game they would like to attend. New tickets cannot be awarded without the original tickets for the Jan. 2 game.

SERIES HISTORY

Ohio State leads the all-time series with Miami, 39-35-6. Miami has a 23-12-3 edge in games played in Oxford. Ohio State has taken three of the last four from the RedHawks.

Ohio State leads the all-time series with Cornell 2-1-0. The Buckeyes won the first (1985) and last (1993) meetings between the two teams.

OSU is 1-0-1 all-time against Colgate. The two teams met in 1988 (4-4 tie) and 1992 (6-5 OSU win).

THE OPPOSITION

Miami fell to last place in the CCHA with a pair of road losses last weekend. The RedHawks stand 2-12-3 in the league (4-15-4 overall). Miami fell 5-1 to first-place Michigan State and 2-0 to Notre Dame last weekend. Jason Deskins (11-9-20) and Mark Shalawylo (6-10-16) lead the RedHawks offensively. Scoring has been an issue for Miami so far this season. The RedHawks are averaging 2.12 goals per game, ranking 10th in the league. Ian Olsen has seen the majority of the time in goal for Miami and brings a 3.54 goals against average and .880 save percentage into Tuesday’s game. Olsen stopped 28-of-33 shots against the Spartans last weekend. Andy Marsch was in the nets against Notre Dame and stopped 35-of-37 shots. Miami is one of the youngest team’s in the CCHA. Entering last weekend, the RedHawks sophomore class had accounted for 49 percent of the team’s goals (27-of-55).

Cornell stands 7-5-2 overall and 4-2-2 in the 12-team ECAC. The Big Red were not in action last weekend, but fell 7-3 to Providence on Jan. 5 in their most recent game. Kyle Knopp leads Cornell offensively with four goals and 17 assists. He ranks second in the ECAC in league scoring (2-13-15). Two young goalies have split time so far this season for Cornell. Freshman Matt Underhill has appeared in nine games and brings a 3.37 GAA and .901 save percentage into this weekend. Sophomore Ian Burt has also played in nine games for the Big Red and has a 2.59 GAA to go along with .913 save percentage.

Colgate enters this weekend 11-5-1 overall and in third place in the ECAC with a 6-2-0 mark. Like Cornell, Colgate was not in action last weekend. The Red Raiders last game was a 4-3 overtime decision against Clarkson on Jan. 3. Colgate is led offensively by Andy McDonald (11-11-22), the ECAC’s third-leading scorer. Seven players have reached double figures in points for Colgate. Defensively, the team has surrendered a league-low 41 goals in all games. Shep Harder has seen most of the action in goal for the Red Raiders and will bring an impressive 2.10 GAA and .920 save percentage into this weekend.

OSU vs. MIAMI – LAST TIME

The Buckeyes and RedHawks last met in a home-and-home weekend series. Ohio State took the first game 2-1 in an overtime thriller. Trailing 1-0 late in the third period, Ryan Jestadt scored with :05 seconds remaining in a six-on-five situation to tie the game. Neal Rech followed with a goal at 3:37 in overtime to give OSU a 2-1 win. The RedHawks rebounded at home the next night for a 4-1 win. Hugo Boisvert scored the lone goal for OSU, a power-play score in the first period.

OSU vs. CORNELL – LAST TIME

The Buckeyes and Big Red last met in the championship game of the Cleveland College Hockey Classic on Dec. 30, 1992. The Buckeyes won that game 3-0.

OSU vs. COLGATE – LAST TIME

Ohio State last met the Red Raiders on Dec. 27 in the opening round of the Syracuse Invitational. OSU advanced to the championship game of that tournament with a 6-5 overtime win over Colgate.

OSU vs. THE ECAC

Ohio State has not met an ECAC team this year. The Buckeyes went 2-0-1 against ECAC teams last season, beating Yale in the NCAA Tournament and winning and tying at Clarkson.

As a conference, CCHA teams have gone 5-3-0 against ECAC teams this season.

LAST WEEKEND

The Buckeyes split a weekend series with Lake Superior, winning 8-2 on Jan. 7 and falling 3-2 on Jan. 9.

Ohio State exploded for its highest offensive output of the year in the 8-2 victory. Chris Richards (two goals, two assists), Hugo Boisvert (one goal, three assists), and Jean-Francois Dufour (one goal, two assists) led the Buckeyes offensively. Jeff Maund was in goal for nearly 50 minutes against LSSU, stopping 25-of-27 shots. Ray Aho finished off the game with 10 shutout minutes. Seven different Buckeyes scored in the win. Ohio State also set a season high with three power-play goals in one game.

Goals were harder to come by in the second game against the Lakers. Despite outshooting LSSU 38-16 and stopping all four Laker power-play opportunities, the Buckeyes were handed a 3-2 loss. Eric Meloche and Brandon Lafrance each scored for Ohio State on the power-play. The Buckeyes put at least 11 shots on goal and surrendered no more than six in each period.

Ohio State’s power-play has been nearly unstoppable of late. The Buckeyes have scored at least one power-play goal in eight straight games. Over that span, OSU has converted on 13-of-53 power-play opportunities (.245). Against Lake Superior, the Buckeyes connected on five-of-13 power-play attempts. Boisvert leads OSU in power-play points (6-8-14). Ohio State ranks second in the CCHA in power-play percentage in overall games (23-of-27; .181).

NATURAL BORN PENALTY KILLERS

The Buckeyes have killed off 17 consecutive opponent power-plays. The last team to score a power-play goal on the Buckeyes was Minnesota on Dec. 28 in the Mariucci Classic.

MR. VALUE CITY ARENA

Chris Richards, the first-goal scorer in the history of Value City Arena and the owner of the first two game-winning goals in the Arena, enters this weekend with a four-game point scoring streak. Richards has nine points (4-5-9) in his last four games.

ANOTHER HOT ONE

Boisvert also owns a four-game point scoring streak and has seven points (2-5-7) in his last four games. Boisvert also has 12 points (3-9-12) in his last seven games. With his five points against Lake Superior, Hugo Boisvert is now tied for third in the league in CCHA scoring (7-15-22).

MAUND MATTERS

Sophomore goalie Jeff Maund had a streak of 114 consecutive scoreless minutes snapped when surrendering a goal in the third period of OSU’s 8-2 win over Lake Superior. Maund has allowed two or less goals in four of his last six games. He ranks second in the conference with a .927 save percentage.

HOMECOMING

The trip to Cornell marks a homecoming of sorts for Ohio State assistant coach Casey Jones, a 1990 graduate of the Ithaca, N.Y, University. Jones captained the Big Red his senior season and served as an assistant coach at Cornell for two seasons.

STREAK SNAPPED

Prior to the 3-2 loss to Lake Superior, Eric Meloche had not tallied a minus-rating in a game all season. Meloche did score his fourth goal of the season against LSSU. Ohio State went 1-5-1 in the seven games that Meloche was injured earlier this season and has gone 10-4-1 since his return.

IMPACT FRESHMAN

Nick Ganga, the final addition to this year’s freshman class, has scored three goals in his last five games. Ganga ranks second in scoring among this year’s freshmen (4-4-8).

ANOTHE RGOOD YOUNG ONE

Freshman defenseman Jason Crain recorded an assist in both games against Lake Superior. Crain has seven points (2-5-7) in his last eight games. He is tied with Andre Signoretti as Ohio State’s top scoring defenseman (2-9-11).

SPEAKING OF SIGNORETTI

Signoretti had a pair of assists in the 8-2 win over the Lakers and has four points in his last four games. An excellent passer and strong skater that is counted on to get the puck out of the OSU zone, Signoretti has helped Ohio State go 7-2-0 when he scores a point.

NOT A BAD BEGINNING

The first three hockey games at the 17,500-seat Value City Arena were a hit with the city of Columbus. The average attendance through the first three games was 10,769.

HOME VERSUS ROAD

Ohio State is 7-1-0 at home this season and 4-5-2 on the road. The Buckeyes have also played three games at neutral sites this year and have dropped all three (two by one goal).

TELLING STATISTIC

Ohio State is 7-1-1 when scoring first this season and just 4-8-1 when allowing the first goal.

Ohio State is a perfect 6-0-0 when wingers Nick Ganga and Benji Wolke are paired together.

DOWN THE ROAD

Ohio State will return home in two weeks to begin its longest homestand of the season – four games. The Buckeyes will host Ferris State on Jan. 21 and Michigan on Jan. 23. Over 13,200 tickets have already been sold for the match-up against Michigan.

VALUE CITY ARENA INFO

Value City Arena, the finest collegiate facility in the nation, was built at a cost of $106.5 million. No student fees or tuition money was used in the construction of the building. The Arena will hold 17,500 spectators for hockey, making it larger than nearly 40 percent of the venues used in the National Hockey league and the largest collegiate hockey facility in the nation. The Buckeyes first practiced in Value City Arena on Christmas night. Lines were painted on the ice during OSU’s recent trip to the Mariucci Classic.

The 700,000 square foot facility features 52 luxury suites and over 200 television monitors. It is 136 feet high from the floor to the roof, and beneath the ice surface lies more than 12 miles of refrigerated pipe.

See your Ohio State hockey media guide (pgs. 2-3) for more information on Value City Arena and the Jerome Schottenstein Center.

NEW FACES

The most recent three-time captain in the history of Ohio State hockey has joined the Buckeye coaching staff. Steve Brent was named an assistant coach at his alma mater this summer, and will assist with recruiting and on-ice instruction efforts. He served as an undergraduate assistant coach last season while completing his degree. Brent is a native of Penticton, British Columbia.

John LaCoste has also been named goaltending coach at Ohio State. A 1986 graduate of the University of Maine, LaCoste enjoyed a four-year playing career with the Black Bears and spent one season playing professional hockey in Europe. He holds a pair of master’s degrees from Ohio State. LaCoste is originally from Montreal, Que.